An assistant had to remove one black and white slide and replace it with the next in line. Over time, we moved on to coloured images, then 35mm slides until powerpoint took over.
Now, quite suddenly, we are experiencing another great leap forward and, typically, much of it comes from China. It is all to do with AI and virtual reality.
Hemudu is a renowned Chinese site, which lies in lowlands south of the Yangtze River estuary. It is significant because it documents the establishment of early rice farmers in a permanently occupied settlement.
Houses were raised on wooden piles to protect against the damp low-lying habitat and, to this day, the foundations can still be seen. The anaerobic layer that once enveloped the site has preserved organic remains that usually remain invisible, such as the shoulder blades of cattle that were hafted to serve as spades, the pits still containing harvested acorns, and the fishing nets and baskets.
I was really taken aback by the new museum, where there is a large area with floor and walls serving as screens. On walking into it, I entered a prehistoric world where villagers were hard at work. Some were forming pottery vessels, others weaving or bringing in a slaughtered deer. Older occupants sat in front of their houses, children played.
Hemudu has such an aura that it even features on a set stamps.
A quick search now reveals how virtual reality is taking off in museums round the world. At the Louvre, you explore the world of Leonardo da Vinci and learn more about the Mona Lisa. The Uffizi gallery in Florence enables you to sit at home and admire the Botticelli gallery without queuing for hours. The British Museum uses google street view - I have just been looking at the collection of artefacts from Oceania.
Better still, the collections can be taken virtually to the classroom.
One of the responsibilities of we archaeologists, is to bring what we find to as large an audience as possible and this is taking off with lightning speed.
